kelly


 * || =High School Preview=

by Kelly Granfield (missgranfield@gmail.com) || ||

Overview
This game will be an overview of what a ninth grade student has to look forward to (and watch out for) during their four-year stint in high school. High School Preview will simulate commonalities in the high school experience and allow players to experience these situations along the way. Each player (student) will need to complete 4 levels (years of high school) in order to win the game by graduating.

Instructional Objective
The learners will be able to see what is to come over the next 4 years of their high school experience. They will encounter circumstances and situations (good and bad) that are typical during high school. The game will be utilized for school, though there is no place where it fits into the curriculum.

Learners
The game is designed for incoming freshmen, during their first week of school. This will be an introduction to the school and events that the freshmen students will experience throughout their four years of high school. I picture the students playing the game during an Advisory period, and feel the students will enjoy the game as a preview of what is to come over the next 4 years.

Context of Use
The game will be used during the first week of school in an on-line competition amongst freshmen in the same class. Later, the students would be able to access the game via the web, should they wish to play again and compete versus others over the Internet.

In a school, the students would need to be in a computer lab atmosphere or have the use of a laptop cart, with a 1:1 ratio of computers to students. At home, students would need the use of their own personal computer. Students would be able to play this more than one time, as the decisions they make as players may change, as well as the options in the game would be set to random for the obstacles and opportunities that occur.

Prior to the game, the students will be informed of the directions of the game, and then will select 3 other students (from the class) to play against on-line. The students will be given a specific sequence of numbers to place in front of their username in order to specify which students are from the class in order to select the correct players to compete against on-line. After the game is over, students will break up into the groups of 4 they played in and discuss the game and talk about the experiences they found they may or may not come across throughout their high school careers. As an incentive, the student who wins out of each foursome will receive extra credit for the class.

The game would first be used in a classroom, such as an Advisory period, or could even be played at a type of orientation for freshmen students before the first day of school even arrives. Individuals will each be playing the game, though they will be competing against three others (multiplayer), making up teams of four for each game. The game is set up more like an old-school video game such as Donkey Kong, with individual levels to complete (4 years) and ladders that must be climbed in order to complete each level. I picture the game lasting approximately 30 minutes.

I am not completely sure of the platform of the game (as I am very unfamiliar with gaming software, etc), but looking through the platforms introduced in the lecture and through exploration on-line, I feel that two may work. The Unity platform looked as though it may work as the graphics looked incredible and there were many different possibilities shown with terrains, publishment to the Wii, etc. Additionally, the e-adventure platform looked as though the graphics would be excellent and looked as though it might work well with the video gaming and levels in the adventure format and and with assessment tools I am looking to have in the e-game.

Scope
The game will be made up of four levels; one for each year of high school, 9th - 12th grades. I estimate the game will take 30 minutes to complete the levels for all four players. There is no curricular content specifically included, rather an overview of many common opportunities, setbacks and occurrences that may happen during a four-year high school experience. This will include typical and atypical happenings, so it may be usable for different locations and regions. Throughout the four levels, there will be different opportunities, including: occurrences for students to succeed and fail academically, as well as experiences where students may have fun and/or get into trouble.

Object of the Game
The game's goal is for the players (students) to make it through 4 years of high school and make it to graduation. The end state that players are striving for is to complete the game with having the most fun or accomplishments, shown by the total number of accumulated points they have earned.

Competing Products
I found this game called Avatar High at http://games.the-n.com/games/avHigh/ahigh.php

You are the owner of a virtual high school that contains eight unique students. You can sit back and watch, help them become happy, or ruin their lives. First you name the high school and select each student and characterize all 8 students, by changing hair, skin color, etc.

There are three power level graphs which monitor the following levels for the students:
 * Academics
 * Athletics
 * Artistic
 * Happiness

Based on interactions with other students, and activities they become involved in, points are gained or lost. Based upon these activities and the points the levels of the above-mentioned categories fluctuate.

Students are able to buy the following items with their earned points:
 * Shoes
 * Cell Phone
 * License
 * Laptop
 * Art Supplies

Students also have the following actions to impose upon other students:
 * Have a crush on someone
 * Give someone body odor

Other items involved in the game include:
 * Report card is shown
 * A note is updated on who is the student's friends
 * A graph shows levels of the last 8 days
 * Events
 * Big Test
 * Big Game
 * Prom
 * Graduation
 * Party

Rooms (and time periods) in the game include:
 * Lunch
 * Art
 * Gym
 * Class

//**Comparison**// High School Preview is similar to Avatar High, with some of the situations that will occur. Avatar High is much more tailored to the student's decision-making and individual choices. High School Preview is more of a general overview of what students may expect throughout their high school career and takes them through all of the situations rather than allowing them to make decisions they think they should just because they are the "right" things to do. This game is a better overview of the real experience in a simpler and much less time consuming manner.

Design Details
//Universal Elements// The game is set up similar to that of the videogame, Donkey Kong:

There are levels and they must make it up each level using the ladder and get to the top. Once to the top, they are able to move on to the next level. The game board is colorful, each level having a different color base, though the actual view of the level having the same setup. The player (student) will be a cartoon character that they may customize, entering in their name, and choosing their outfit. As the player moves throughout the level, the game will speak to the player as to what random card has been selected for them as they pass each square activity. Sounds will coincide with what is happening (ie., bells and whistles for good situations, and bombs and buzzers for the negative).

//**Level I - Freshmen Year

Level II - Sophomore Year

Level III - Junior Year

Level IV - Senior Year**//

//Specific Elements// >
 * Flowchart of the game:
 * The role the learner is playing while moving throughout the game is that of a student in high school. They begin as a freshman, and continue on to become a sophomore, junior and eventually a senior.
 * The overall game goal the learner is trying to achieve, is graduation. This occurs upon completion of four levels of the game (years in high school).
 * Obstacles that will challenge the learner are embedded in the spaces, which include:
 * Losing friends
 * Breaking up with a boyfriend/girlfriend
 * Failing a test, project, speech, presentation
 * Defiance to teachers
 * Getting into trouble at a party
 * Losing a big game
 * Skipping study hall
 * Kicked off of a club/team
 * Failing grades on a report card
 * Random event
 * Achievements earned by the learner are embedded in the spaces, which include:
 * Excellent report card - Any year
 * Honor Roll - Achieved any year
 * Join a club/team - Any year
 * Make new friends - Any year
 * Get a boyfriend/girlfriend - Any year
 * Ace a test, project, speech, presentation - Any year
 * Earn respect and trust of teachers
 * Obtain community service by helping out in study hall
 * Athletic varsity letter - Achieved 10th - 12th grade years
 * Club/Team certificate of membership - Achieved any year
 * Homecoming/Prom King or Queen - Achieved 12th grade
 * Valedictorian/Salutatorian - Achieved 12th grade
 * Non-player characters will include:
 * Principal - Will randomly appear throughout the game
 * Teachers - Will appear when a //'Teachers'// space is passed
 * Friends - Will appear when a //'Friends//' space is passed
 * Player characters include:
 * Students
 * Players will begin with 500 points. Along the way, players increase and decrease their total value of points based upon the random card the game selected for the category on the space the player is passing. Points are listed on each individual card, and vary. Should a player dwindle down to 0 points, they are considered a "dropout," and must begin again.
 * The arrows on the game board show the direction go on each level, starting at the bottom of the screen and moving to the top. On a player's turn, they will continue to move forward, passing spaces as long as they are accumulating points. Once a player attempts to pass a space and points are deducted, the player must stop, and it is the next player's turn. At the beginning of the player's next turn, they continue forward, they do not need to start on the square they were unable to pass in their last turn. Certain spaces may move a player forward or backward in a level, or even propel them to skip ahead or fall back an entire level. Once a player reaches the top of a level, they continue their turn by beginning the next level.

//Technical Elements//
 * Unity or e-adventure platforms needed to author the game

Motivational Issues
The game engages the learner as it presents many of the exciting, nerve-racking, fun, and awful experiences the learner has ahead of them. It is useful to them as they will begin (or see other peers) experiencing these categories in the game immediately upon entering high school. More focused students may begin to plan ahead, other students may see something in the game they may decide to strive for, while others may see experiences that have happened to them in the past. and decide they want to change their behavior.

High School Preview makes use of the following elements:
 * //**Curiosity**// - Incoming freshmen may have no idea what lies ahead of them, as they may be the oldest in their family and the first to experience high school. This game will give them a good idea of the different options they have that lie ahead, as well as give them the ability to see consequences of certain actions, good and bad.
 * //**Fantasy**// - This game has all of the high school experience wrapped up into one. It would be very surprising if every single category in this game happened to every student. Typically, students get on a track, and may not experience items on the other side. For example, a quiet, shy student may always get good grades and do the right thing, and never get in trouble or suspended. This game will allow them to do that. On the other hand, students who typically make the wrong choices may fantasize about them being able to do the right thing.
 * //**Competition**// - It is a game, so there will be a winner. Up to four players compete against each other to see who will graduate first, and with the most achievements, or points. The game may be played over and over, as with each new game, new cards will appear in a different order, among different players.

Design Process
I first thought of a game I would like to do with freshmen students. They have the hardest time adjusting, and they really enjoy playing games. I learned this in my classes this year, by starting out my Accounting unit by having them play the [|lemonade stand game]. My idea was to have them start out in their first week of school by seeing everything they had to look forward to during high school. I teach students at the 11th grade level, and by the time I get them then, they always say they wish they had made better decisions and cared more about school and being involved as a freshmen and even a sophomore. This is how I came up with the idea of a game to simulate the experience for them ahead of time, in the hopes that they would see what lies ahead, positive and negative, and how their decisions may effect them.

It was easy for me to come up with the concept of completing four types of levels, as their high school years, and ending with graduation. However, it took me a while to come up wit the idea of the layout of the game. I was stuck in the board game mode and had to think more of a videogame style. That is when I thought about the old videogame, Donkey Kong. This struck a note with me, as there are ladders you need to climb to reach the top and move along to the next level, with obstacles (barrels) being thrown at you along the way. Upon completion of four of these levels, graduation would be achieved.

Once I had the layout, now I needed to think more about how the game would work. I brainstormed the many experiences that occur during high school, good and bad and made a laundry list. I came up with this information based on my own high school experiences and those that my current students go through each year. Next, I decided to design the board. I stayed with the Donkey Kong theme, and added ladders to the top, while moving left to right to left to right, though then I decided to add in factors pertaining to a school. I added in four rows, each pertaining to a quarter of the year, and made nine spaces in each row, each pertaining to a week within the quarter. I decided to make the board colorful, one bright color for each level, though kept the same theme and layout of each level the same. Next, I needed to look at my list of experiences and start filling them into the gameboard. This is where I started to change around how I was going to go about the game.

First I started entering in experiences on the spaces, leaving some blank and using some multiple times. I started to think about how I wanted the game to work. Would there be some sort of dice or spinner? Would the student be able to make choices? Originally, I thought yes to both of these questions. After meeting with the professor, however, I realized that in order to make this game more "real," I would need to make it so the players would not just select something because they know it is the right thing they should do. This was an important point, because otherwise, the learners would not really be getting much out of the game. So I decided to broadly categorize the experiences and allow the computer to randomly come up with a situation for the player, rather than have the player select right from wrong themselves. I did go back and forth, because that did end up changing the element of the game, though I figured this way students would be able to experience a multitude of situations that they may never think they would get themselves into, and see what the outcome would be. Based upon this change, I decided I wanted every student to experience everything on the gameboard, as sometimes with the randomness of the roll of dice or use of a spinner the player may miss out on much of the game, especially with the inclusion of blank spaces as well. So I decided to have the players continue along the path of the board and keep going until they came upon a negative experience. At this point they would stop.

One question I am still toying with is whether or not the student should have to begin on the same spot they let off on, or just begin with the next space. I keep going back and forth: In one sense, I think they hould have to continue where they left off, but this could stop someone up for a while and prolong the game longer than necessary for many, and have one person go the entire way. On the other hand, most games you start off where you left off and need to compete that space, and they will need to overcome the situation in order to move on. As of now, I have them moving along, as I think the timing of the game is more important as well, as there are multiple spaces along the board, so I feel the players will have plenty of experiences along the way.

Below is the list of items I currently have as situations: Point levels would need to be determined, but the + or - tells whether points will be added or subtracted.

I searched online and in the game sites provided by the professor to see if there are similar games out there. The only one I found, and really liked, was the game I mentioned above, Avatar High. I spoke to fellow teachers and junior and senior students to come up with more specific situations for the categories in which the students would pass by on the game. I created the entire board and came up with a sampling of questions for each category, based upon how many times each space appeared throughout the levels on the board. Additionally, I decided to create a random category (?) in order to serve as a catch all for some of the items I was coming up with as situations. Lastly, I decided to have more random (?) spaces as the player got further along in the game: so I have one space at the 9th grade level, two (?) spaces at the 10th grade level, three (?) spaces at the 11th grade level and four (?) spaces at the 12th grade level. My reasoning for this was that as students get older, they have less common experiences (that they have already overcome) and other situations begin to arise more frequently.